The German-israeli varvsaffären took a dramatic turn on Saturday. In his first formal interview in three years, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to explain Israel TV2 why he allowed Germany to sell attack submarines to Egypt without consulting their own fleet and their own economy.
the Scandal, likely to be the hardest mutaffären in both Israel and the democratic history of Germany, has many branches and sidings. But the most troublesome aspect of the Netanyahu part in the ongoing election campaign is the question of the egyptian submarines.
Egypt shall not dispose of the offensively-armed u-boats, something that Egypt’s various suppliers, mainly the united states and Germany, respected.
But this year sought Angela Merkel’s government, the Netanyahu’s consent for the export to Egypt of the same advanced Dolphin submarines that Israel buys from the vapenjätten Thyssen-Krupp in Kiel. Without consulting their own flottchef, the commander in chief or the defense minister gave Netanyahu the green light.
In Saturday’s TV interview, claimed a hard-cornered Netanyahu that the reason he has not said ‘ no ‘ to the German request is secret. So secret that he does not even have to disclose it for the leaders. Experts and historians say there is no precedent in this; prime ministers take never such decision at its own discretion.
more troubling for Netanyahu, then, that in recent weeks disclosed that he is through an american relative, bought shares in a company which stood in close connection with the Thyssen-Krupp.
the Shares, which were sold in 2010, resulted in Netanyahu 30 million. Faced with a large kanonbåtsorder a few interrupted Netanyahu’s bidding, and hired Thyssen-Krupp, even though flottchefen and the secretary of defense opposed this, whereupon the defence minister was forced to resign.
